26-05-2025
Doctors Said It Was Tonsillitis. But 12 Hours Later, This 5-Year-Old Died Sleeping Next to Her Mom
Lila Marsland's family took her to the hospital when she was vomiting and experiencing neck pain and headaches
Lila's mom, Rachael Mincherton, says her 5-year-old daughter was diagnosed with tonsillitis
The next morning, Mincherton woke to discover her daughter "unresponsive" — later tests would determine she had meningitis, an inflammation of the brainA young girl's family was told she had tonsillitis, but when her mom woke up the next morning, her daughter was unresponsive — the result of untreated meningitis.
The family of Lila Marsland, 5, says they took her to a hospital in the English city of Manchester in December 2023 after Lila complained of a headache, neck pain, and had been vomiting. Her mother, Rachael Mincherton, a former nurse, said she asked if her daughter's symptoms were caused by meningitis, or swelling in the brain. But a nurse diagnosed Lila with tonsillitis and sent her home with antibiotics, according to The Daily Mail.
'When we arrived home from [the] hospital, I slept with Lila that night,' Mincherton said. 'When I woke she was unresponsive.'
Paramedics arrived "within minutes" Mincherton said, adding they "did everything they could, but it was too late. At that moment our family changed forever."
After Lila's death, tests found signs of the bacteria that cause meningitis in the fluid surrounding Lila's brain. As John Hopkins Medicine explains, bacterial meningitis is a 'true medical emergency' that can result in death or brain injury even if treated. Symptoms include fever and chills, nausea and vomiting, and headaches and neck pain. The condition requires 'immediate hospital-based treatment.'
Mincherton and her partner, Darren Marsland, also share a daughter, Ava, 15. They've since started a charity, Lila's Light, in their daughter's memory, aiming to support siblings through loss.
'She had a zest for life and her entire future ahead of her. It breaks our hearts that she'll never get to make the most of life and fulfill her potential,' her mom said. 'Lila was the most amazing and adorable little girl. She was a gentle soul who had many friends, and all the teachers at school thought the world of her.'
'I'd pick Lila up and it would take half an hour to leave as she would be hugging all of the teachers,' she said. "One of the hardest things to try and come to terms with is having so many unanswered questions about why Lila died."
"We wouldn't wish what we're having to go through on anyone.'
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